LANGUAGE EVALUATION AND

ACCOUNTABILITY BBI 5216

Presented by: Ranjini Kunalan

Overview
Preparing learners for tests
Selecting and Using tests
The gold standard

(Fulcher, 2010)
Preparing Learners for Tests
 There are two types of preparations for
learners.

 Each type of preparation leads to either the

positive or negative washback on teaching
and learning.
Preparing learners for tests
 1st Type
 The item types and the kinds of instructions
they will encounter.
 Give them practice in working within time
limitations.
 To ensure that learners do not spend time and
effort having to work out what they should be
doing during the test.
 This type of preparation reduces the chance
that scores will be affected by their
unfamiliarity of any aspect of test
Preparing learners for tests
1. Test becomes a teaching- learning activity.
2. Test opens doors for changes in methodologies
and syllabus
3. Tests induce teachers to cover their subjects and
complete their syllabi within the prescribed time
limits.
4. Teacher motivates students to work harder to
have a sense of accomplishment to enhance
learning.
 Preparing learners for
tests
Example:

 The teacher will require students to pay attention to

the lessons more attentively, prepare everything
dealing with a particular subject more thoroughly,
learn the lessons by heart. The teachers will also
have to teach the lessons harder than before, give
students extra lessons, and give tips and tricks to
study effectively and efficiently. To the extent these
activities, increase motivation and positive attitude.
Thus, creating a positive washback.
 Preparing learners
for tests

2nd Type
 To increase the score of the test taker by instilling
test-taking techniques that focus upon the test
items, rather than improving the learners’ ability
on the familiarity of the question constructs.
 By spending time looking at the options on MCQ
to discover how frequently the longest options are
likely to be the correct response (“test score
pollution”)
 Preparing learners
for test

1. Ignoring subjects and activities that did not

contribute directly to pass the exam.
2. Teaching of the test, which leads to memorization
approach, with reduced emphasis on critical
thinking
3. Students practice exam techniques rather than
language learning activities.
4. Students may not be able to learn real life
knowledge instead learn knowledge that is tested.
Preparing learners for
tests
Example:

 The teacher gives more focus on topics that are

important for tests and ignore topics that do not
contribute directly to pass the exam. Moreover, the
teachers threaten the students in facing the exam,
making the students will feel a lot anxiety about
the exam. This consequence will affect students.
They will feel that they are under pressure. Thus it
will affect the students performance. This effect
has negative washback.
Selecting & Using Tests
 Teachers are frequently required to select
the tests to use in their institutions. This is
common when the time and resources to
develop a local test are not available.
Selecting & Using Tests
1. Validity : Measures what it ought to be
testing
2. Reliability : Should be able to provide
consistency in measuring the items being
evaluated
3. Practicality : Easy to administer and to score
without wasting too much time and effort
4. Comprehension : should be comprehensive
and covers all items studied
Selecting and using tests
5. Relevance : the items should measure the
desired objectives or achievements

6. Authenticity : The language of a test should be

able to reflect everyday discourse.

7. Balance : Evaluates both linguistic and

communicative approach.
The Gold Standard
 Teacher as an assessor.
 Testing and assessment theory and
psychometrics, have always had what can only be
called a ‘love-hate’ relationship with teachers
(Shepard, 2000)
 Teachers can either be unreliable or just
downright capricious on how they grade
students.
 The Gold Standard
 (Ruch, 1924:2), with reference to a previous
work by Caldwell and Courtis ( 1923), lists the
reasons why a formal test is to be preferred to
a teacher assessment :
1. It is impartial
2. It is just to the pupils
3. It is more thorough than older forms of
examinations
4. It prevents the ‘officious interference’ of the
teacher.
The Gold Standard
5. It determines, beyond appeal of
gainsaying, whether the pupils have been
faithfully and competently taught
6. It takes away all possibility of favoritism
7. It makes the information obtained
available to all
8. It enables all to appraise the ease or
difficulty of the questions.
Issues in PT3 : Challenges faced
by teachers
 The lack of knowledge and assessing
skills on SBA is a major barrier for me to
implement the new system.
 The time given to me to prepare for the
SBA is very little
 There is no clear instruction provided on
the assessment
Link to the Video
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjIE
7e8zF3k
THANK YOU! 